Researchers at NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering found that concentrations of air pollution levels in New York City subway platforms were nearly ten times higher than what the World Health Organization considers safe.
The study, conducted by Tandon professor Masoud Ghandehari and NYU Ph.D. alum Shams Azad, recorded concentrations of particulate matter — an air pollutant associated with heart disease, asthma and low birth weight. These levels exceed the WHO’s 24-hour safety threshold by over 600% on trains and more than 900% on subway platforms.
“I wanted to identify which stations are the most polluted, what are the levels of pollution and who is affected by this level of air quality the most,” Azad said in an interview with WSN.
According to an interactive map created by Azad’s team, a trip between NYU’s Brooklyn and Manhattan campuses — specifically from Jay St-MetroTech to West Fourth Street station — can expose riders to particulate matter levels exceeding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s standards by about 112%.
For individuals who frequently travel long distances on the subway, Azad recommends taking precautionary measures, such as wearing a KN95 mask, to minimize exposure to particulate matter while commuting between campuses.
“We cannot easily remove these pollutants from the station,” Azad said. “But, we can use high-quality masks to protect ourselves.”
In 2019, an NYU survey found that 41% of students, faculty and administrators listed the subway system as their most frequented mode of transit — surpassing walking by 15 percentage points. In 2022, the MTA estimated that the subway serves approximately 3.2 million riders per day.
NYU graduate student Mengjie Wang, who also researches air pollution, said she already avoids taking the subway due to concerns about its air quality. She added that NYU “has the responsibility” to share this information with students through regular communications, such as NYU Weekly.
“The newsletter is a good option,” Wang said. “They can put this study in a headline and then advise students to be careful of the subway air pollution.”
Contact Avital Rabinovitch and Sophia Chen at [email protected].
